At one of them, Cal Expo CEO Rick Pickering said his venue has already proven it can successfully host Sacramento Republic FC soccer games at Bonney Field -- so much so, talks will start soon on expanding the stadium for next season.

Either at this month’s fair board of directors meeting or next, he said, directors will consider the logistics of expanding Bonney from the current 8,000 seats to as many as 14,000.

“We’ve made no secret of the desire to expand the seating capacity,” he said, noting several Sacramento Republic games have been sold out in the team’s inaugural season. “We think the numbers will be even higher next year But there is a process we have to go through.”

Given that track record, it’s an understandable and welcome idea that Major League Soccer, which will tour the region next month as league officials ponder the possibility of awarding Sacramento an expansion franchise, would put Cal Expo on its itinerary, he said.

If an MLS team did come to the city, Pickering said, one possibility could entail using Bonney Field for a few seasons until a new stadium is built on another site, possibly even at Cal Expo again. Alternatively, it’s also possible Bonney Field itself could be expanded enough to meet the needs of the MLS.

“Anyone investigating in that level of opportunities will be looking at chances for being successful,” he said. “The first step of the goal has been achieved, to prove the market exists.”

Another area mentioned, the River District neighborhood of Sacramento around Richards Boulevard, also is a valid contender, said the area’s president.

Steve Goodwin said while he couldn’t talk about any specific sites, the overall concept would be welcome, with redevelopment of the neighborhood an ongoing goal.

As such, owners of some of the aging warehouse properties along Richards might welcome the opportunity to sell or convert them into stadium land, Goodwin said.

“The properties are large enough that you wouldn’t have to buy too many of them,” he said.

There’s also a large amount of vacant land at Township Nine in the River District, which Goodwin is also overseeing. But because that property is spoken for with plans for residential, office and retail uses, it would be complementary to a stadium rather than hosting it, he said.